CONCERN FOR DYING - Vol.9 No.1 - Winter 1983 - April Meeting Focuses On Ethics Committees - CFD

Sep 29, 2026

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Issue of an educational council newsletter describing the work of CFD in supporting refusal-of-treatment decisions and implementing Living Wills. It outlines how the national Living Wills RegistrySM stores signed, witnessed documents and provides updates and counseling to families, lawyers, and physicians. The publication then highlights upcoming and regional conferences, including an April meeting on institutional ethics committees and a Midwest judges seminar on court roles in terminating treatment.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

CFD Offers National Living Wills RegistrySM To Help Implement Refusal-of-Treatment Decisions

April Meeting Focuses On Ethics Committees

CFD Legal Advisors Lead Midwest Judges Seminar

# CFD OFFERS NATIONAL LIVING WILLS REGISTRYSMTOHELP IMPLEMENT REFUSAL-OF-TREATMENT DECISIONS To help family members and othersresponsible to execute properly and fullythe provisions of a Living Will,CFD issetting up the first nationwide Living WillsRegistry,(SM)according to Executive Direc-tor A-J Levinson. who join the Living Wills Registry.(SM) At the request of a participant,CFD'sstaff will periodically update information,from changes of address to any changes inthe terms of the Living Will itself Upon request,CFD will also give adviceon options and procedures to family mem-bers and others who are called upon to im-plement the provisions of a Living Will.Such help will be a matter of counseling,however,rather than of conflict resolution.Registry participants without living rela-tives will benefit from the protection ofhaving their wishes on record and immedi-ately communicable to,for example,alawyer or personal physician. “All too often,"she reports,"weencounter situations in which a Living Willhas not been implemented simply becausethe family or legal guardian did not knowwhat to do. "Sometimes the family has been intimi-dated by the attending physician inarefusal-of-treatment case.Often,they havenot understood the rights of the patient." The Living Wills RegistrySM has beendesigned to get the necessary informationand advice to those who have the responsi-bility of seeing that a relative's or client'swishes are observed. "The Registry will most effectively func-tion as a kind of support system,"com-ments Levinson,"both for people withoutrelatives and for family members who wantto be certain that they're fulfilling thewishes of a relative who is no longer ableto articulate those wishes." A participant in the program will send acopy of a signed and witnessed Living Will,with indivldually specific instructions,tobe kept on file and made readily accessibleby means of a computerized catalogue.ARevised Mini-Will,with the advice to con-tact CFD for more information if the bear-er is rendered comatose or otherwise un-able to communicate,will be mailed to all A fee of $25 covers membership in theRegistry,a Revised Mini-Will and the ser-vices outlined above.Those interestedshould send a copy of a current Living Willand the enclosed fee to the CFD office.Alower fee can be arranged if necessary. Seminar leaders Cranford,Fost and Robertson confer. CONCERN FOR DYING an educational council Vol.9 No.1-Winter 1983 # April Meeting Focuses OnEthics Committees An important conference for heaith pro-fessionals directly involved in medical deci-sionmaking will bejointly sponsored inWashington,D.C.,next month by CFDand the American Society of Law andMedicine. Nationally known experts will examinethe theme,Institutional Ethics Committees:Their Role in Medical Decisionmaking,onApril 21 through 23 at the Washington Hil-ton.The unusually strong conference fa-culty includes George J.Annas,Utley Pro-fessor of Health Law,Boston UniversitySchools of Medicine and Public Health;Alexander M.Capron,Professor of Law,Georgetown University Law School;Dr.Joanne Lynn,Assistant Professor,Geria-trics,George Washington University;John J.Paris,S.J.,Associate Professor,College (Continued on page 4) # CFD Legal Advisors LeadMidwest Judges Seminar Judges from two Midwestern statesparticipated in a two-day seminarfeaturing representatives of CFD's LegalAdvisory Committee last month.Theprogram,one of the first of its kind in thecountry,explored in depth many issues ofconcern to CFD supporters:for example,the role of the courts in termination oftreatment;the applicability of the Law tocases of defective newborns. Meeting in LaCrosse,Wisconsin,onFebruary 17 and 18,currently active judgesfrom Wisconsin and Minnesota heardpresentations from Dr.Ron Cranford,Associate Professor of Neurology,Hennepin County Medical Center,Minneapolis;Dr.Norman Fost,Universityof Wisconsin School of Medicine,andGeorge J.Annas,Utley Professor of (Continue

FAQs

What does CFD do to help implement Living Will refusal-of-treatment decisions?

CFD sets up and administers a nationwide Living Wills RegistrySM, stores signed and witnessed Living Wills, and provides counseling and guidance when family members need to implement the provisions.

How is information maintained and accessed through the Living Wills RegistrySM?

At a participant’s request, CFD periodically updates registry information, including address changes and changes to the Living Will terms, and makes the stored documents accessible via a computerized catalogue.

What topics are covered in the April conference mentioned in this issue?

The April meeting focuses on Institutional Ethics Committees: Their Role in Medical Decisionmaking, with experts examining how such committees influence medical decisionmaking.

What did the Midwest judges seminar address?

It explored issues such as the role of courts in termination of treatment and the applicability of law to cases of defective newborns, with presentations from CFD legal and medical advisors.

Sep 29, 2026

Uploaded by Ben